Yahoo DFS Baseball: Thursday-Friday Picks

Winner of the FSWA 2016 Newcomer of the Year Award, Juan Carlos Blanco has been playing fantasy sports for close to 20 years and covers NBA, MLB, and the NFL for Rotowire.com, including serving as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' beat writer. He has previously written for KFFL.com and remains an avid season-long and daily fantasy player in multiple sports.

Justin Verlander, HOU vs. NYY ($52): Verlander stymied the Yankees in Game 2, hurling a complete game, 13-strikeout gem that netted 49.2 fantasy points. He’s 3-0 overall in the postseason, with his two best wins coming at home. He allowed just one earned run over 14 innings across two regular-season starts at Minute Maid Park after being acquired from the Tigers as well, and with the Astros facing elimination, he’s a high-upside play given his 10-5 career postseason record.

Jose Quintana, CHC vs. LAD ($39): Quintana has been effective in two postseason starts and did a solid job against the Dodgers in Game 1 of the series, allowing two earned runs over five innings. He also racked up an impressive 10.7 K/9 over 45.1 innings at Wrigley since coming across town from the White Sox in mid-July, and faces a Dodgers squad that struck out at a 21.1 percent rate against southpaws on the road in the second half of the season.

CATCHER

Willson Contreras, CHC vs. LAD ($15): Contreras was solid against lefties all year, posting a .389 wOBA, .261 ISO, 30.0 percent HR/FB rate and 34.2 percent hard contact rate against them at Wrigley. He also has hits in five of his last six postseason games, including a solo homer in Game 4 of this series. Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw allowed 16 homers to righty bats this season and has been very vulnerable in two postseason starts, allowing six earned runs over 11 innings, including five round trippers.

FIRST BASE

Anthony Rizzo, CHC vs. LAD ($13): Rizzo may seem like an unlikely candidate, considering his matchup and the 1-for-21 slump that encompasses his last six postseason games. However, consider that Rizzo punished southpaws all season, especially at Wrigley, where he compiled a .424 wOBA, .296 ISO and 25.0 percent HR/FB rate versus that handedness. Meanwhile, Kershaw was much more vulnerable in same-handed matchups, especially on the road, where he yielded a .382 wOBA and matching 25.0 percent HR/FB rate to lefty bats.

SECOND BASE

Chris Taylor, LAD at CHC ($16): Taylor has a pair of two-hit efforts in the NLCS, including a pair of homers and three RBI. Quintana allowed 22 homers and 34.4 percent hard contact rate to right-handed hitters, along with a 26.9 percent HR/FB rate to them in 45.1 innings at Wrigley. Taylor pounded southpaws on the road throughout the season, posting a .411 wOBA (including three homers) over a 72-plate appearance sample.

THIRD BASE

Chase Headley, NYY at HOU ($8): Headley has hit safely in three straight games in the ALCS, including a three-hit effort in Game 5 on Wednesday. Verlander allowed 16 homers to lefty bats this season, along with a 35.8 percent hard contact rate, while Headley posted a .340 wOBA (including eight of his 12 homers) against right-handed hitters.

SHORTSTOP

Carlos Correa, HOU vs. NYY ($21): Correa has hit safely in seven of his last eight postseason games, a stretch that includes a trio of doubles and three homers as well, the most recent coming off Luis Severino in Game 2. The slugging shortstop blasted righties for a .405 wOBA, .257 ISO and 39.2 percent hard contact rate at home this past season as well, furthering his case.

OUTFIELD

Marwin Gonzalez HOU vs. NYY ($10): Severino allowed 12 of his 21 homers to lefty bats this season, while the switch-hitting Gonzalez posted a .397 wOBA, .230 ISO and 35.1 percent hard contact rate against right-handed pitching on the season. His bat has awoken some over the last two games, as he’s posted a pair of hits, including a double, to break out of a four-game slump.

Josh Reddick, HOU vs. NYY ($7): Reddick’s price has bottomed out to the minimum due to a prolonged slump that still has him searching for his first hit of the ALCS. However, he did tap righties for a .398 wOBA at home this season and owns a .372 wOBA against the four-seam fastball, the pitch Severino has been most vulnerable when throwing this season (.336 wOBA allowed).

Aaron Judge, NYY at HOU ($25): Judge has scored double-digit fantasy points in two of the Yankees’ three consecutive wins in this series, a span during which he’s smacked a couple of round trippers and driven in six runs overall. He boasted a .440 wOBA, .364 ISO, 38.3 percent HR/FB rate and 45.1 percent hard contact rate against righties overall in the regular season and remains the highest-upside bat on the slate.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Juan Carlos Blanco plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: DraftKings: jcblanco22, FanDuel: jc_blanco22, DraftPot: jc_blanco22, FantasyDraft: jc_blanco22, OwnThePlay: jcblanco22.